02 June 2006

‘Partitionist’ Ordnance Survey maps omit North’s six counties

An Irish government agency has been accused of supporting partition after it failed to include the six northern counties in a series of 150-year-old maps of Ireland.At the beginning of the week, Ordnance Survey Ireland launched a new website at www.historicmaps.ie.This contains a series of old maps of Ireland.The maps were drawn years before partition, meaning they would have covered all 32 counties.However, Ordnance Survey Ireland has not included the North among the maps on its website.A notice on the website reads: “Please note that currently maps covering Northern Ireland are not contained within this archive.”Sinn Féin TD Aengus Ó Snodaigh accused the Ordnance Survey of effectively supporting partition.He described its omission of the Six Counties from the maps as “unfortunate”.The Dublin South-Central TD said: “These maps were drawn up many years before the partition of this nation and so Ordnance Survey Ireland would have access to the maps of all 32 counties.“It is most unfortunate that they have developed such a partitionist mindset. They are effectively supporting partition. “I would call on them to make all the maps of Ireland that they have in their possession available to all interested parties on this island and beyond.”An Ordnance Survey spokesman said there were plans for the North to be included among maps that had yet to be put on the website.He said: “We have to get the first phase finished before we can look at putting the North on the website.“That includes getting maps from the Republic between 1842 to 1913 online.“Unfortunately, we don’t hold much of the maps detailing the North.“They were taken off us after partition but we do intend gaining access to and putting them on the website some time in the future,” said the spokesman.